Norsk Titanium AS announced an expansion of its customer base into the industrial application market sector in collaboration with the Hittech Group. The production of the first industrial component in this development supports a Hittech end customer in the growing semiconductor equipment market. Norsk expects significant near-term investment by manufacturers in the semiconductor market as they seek to modernize their supply chains. This effort represents Norsk’s first step to support these modernization efforts with a faster, more cost efficient and environmentally friendly approach. Using Norsk’s revolutionary Rapid Plasma Deposition™ (RPD™) process, Norsk engineers have designed a titanium alloy preform that will reduce Hittech’s raw material needs by over 45% as compared to legacy wrought product used to fabricate the end component today. Leveraging the RPD™ industrial process enables Norsk to create a near-net-shape design while maintaining the required quality controls and material properties Hittech needs for this critical component. Utilizing nearly the full 90 cm by 60 cm build envelope of Norsk’s proprietary G4B machine, the resulting RPD™ form will weigh nearly 100 kilograms. Delivery of a first test article is expected by year-end with serial production planned to begin in 2022.